"Mario Kart 9" refers to the game shown in the initial teaser for the Nintendo Switch 2.
There are some weird characters in here; I included all playable characters from here.
Some options may resolve early, but none will resolve until the first Nintendo Switch 2 Direct.
Update 2025-03-02 (PST) (AI summary of creator comment): Unlockable Characters
Characters that are initially on the cartridge but require unlocking at launch will be counted as playable.
Update 2025-03-02 (PST) (AI summary of creator comment): Base Character Requirement Clarification
Only characters that are in their base form are counted as playable.
Alternate forms or transformations (e.g. Metal Mario, Tanooki Mario) do not count.
Update 2025-03-03 (PST) (AI summary of creator comment): Character Naming Clarification
Base Form vs. Variants: If a character appears only as a variant (for example, only as Dry Bowser), it does not count unless the variant is conventionally used as the base name in the game.
Naming Conventions: In cases like Yoshi, although variants (Green Yoshi, Red Yoshi) appear, if the game traditionally refers to the character as simply "Yoshi," then that should count as the base form.
Case-by-Case Basis: The resolution may depend on established in-game naming conventions. For many characters, a color variation (e.g., Green Yoshi) is effectively the base character, whereas others (e.g., Dry Bowser) are not.
1,000@NcyRocks Of course general will not match specific, but will specific match general? E.g. If Bowser is a base character of course that won’t match the answer Dry Bowser, but is the reverse true? Say that there is no base character whose displayed name is Yoshi, because now they have Green Yoshi and Red Yoshi. Would Yoshi resolve YES?
@JimHays Hmm. That seems to depend somewhat on the character - I wouldn't resolve Bowser YES if only Dry Bowser was in, but most (all?) Mario Kart games refer to "Green Yoshi" as just "Yoshi", so that would be a YES. (And this is academic, but only Red Yoshi would probably still be YES.)
@NcyRocks How does e.g. Metal Mario or Tanooki Mario resolve if Mario is a base character, the alternative is not, but there is some power-up that allows some or all characters to occasionally transform into a Metal or Tanooki version of themselves? Or what if each character has a unique “final smash”-like ability that can transform them into the alternate version?
@NcyRocks Do characters still count if they are on the cartridge at launch even if they have to be unlocked before they can be used?